Advertisement
The Hamburg-based Plaion studio Fishlabs reacts to a media report that examines the internal processes in view of a rumored Red Faction-successor.
“How the Embracer cuts ruined a potential Red Faction sequel and destroyed a promising studio” – this is the (translated) headline of a report published a few days ago History of the British magazine Rock Paper Shotgun.
In it, the author traces how the crisis at the Swedish publisher Embracer Group has impacted the Hamburg studio subsidiary Fishlabs, which was one of the largest studios in the Hanseatic city with more than 130 employees until autumn 2023.
As part of the cost-cutting measures introduced by the parent company, there was a massive job cut shortly before Christmas: 50 jobs were lost. The lack of further approval and thus the financing of the unannounced project had led to this decision. Previously, there had been intensive efforts to save the PC and console game 'Project Black', planned for 2026, and the jobs associated with it.
Advertisement
Up to this point, the world seemed to be in order: In 2022, Fishlabs had Chorus won the main prize at the German Computer Game Awards. In spring 2023, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWK) had pledged a grant of €5.5 million – the largest sum to date in the context of computer game funding.
According to the funding application, the working title Project Black was a “Fast-paced third-person action game”in which players take on the role of a ranger on a planet. According to Rock Paper Shotgun research, a new game in Red Factionuniverse based on the Unreal Engine 5.
The project stop meant that the application was withdrawn at the end of 2023: the entry then disappeared from the federal subsidy database. In response to a GamesWirtschaft query, Fishlabs Managing Director Stephan Beier stressed that “No funding from the BMWK went to Fishlabs” be.
Beier, who has worked for other major studios such as Gameforge, Travian and Bigpoint, was also appointed Director of Studio Relations at Munich-based Fishlabs parent company Plaion in March 2024. In this role, he coordinates the interaction of the internal Plaion studios, which include Dambuster (Dead Island 2) and Warhorse (Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2). Since February 2024, the operational business of Fishlabs GmbH has been taken over by Studio Director Angelo Bod, who was previously responsible for co-development projects. Stephan Beier continues to be in charge of strategic studio management.
Beier cannot, will not and is not allowed to comment on the specific circumstances of the project stoppage and the obviously bumpy development in view of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Only this much: “The Rock Paper Shotgun article appears to reflect the subjective viewpoint of one or more former Fishlabs employees.”
The remaining Fishlabs team has 72 employees and has now been entrusted with new tasks: “We are happy that Fishlabs has stabilized well on a smaller scale despite the cuts. The studio is currently working on some already announced projects – such as Goat Simulator 3 – as well as unannounced projects. Since the Fishlabs portfolio is being expanded, there are currently a number of positions advertised.”
The restructuring process at Embracer has been completed since March 2024. The widely ramified business units, studios and publishers will be divided into three new, listed companies – Plaion and Fishlabs are currently assigned to the 'Middle-Earth Enterprises & Friends' segment.
